Of all the wonderful apps and hardware made possible by the Internet, perhaps the least convincing are those that seek to replicate actual human contact. Take, for example, the Like-A-Hug—a jacket which allows any one of your Facebook friends to “hug” you from a distance.

This idea would be annoying even if the people behind Like-A-Hug had figured out an elegant way to execute it. But they didn’t. The Like-A-Hug simulates an embrace by filling an incredibly fashion-backward jacket with air. Imagine walking through the park and every five minutes the shapeless blue vest you’re wearing spontaneously puffs up like an emergency lifejacket. It will not make you feel loved.

This idea is emblematic of the one aspect of social media that we—true believers all—don’t agree with: the neurotic drive to inject social media into every area of human experience. Whatever value it has to your self-esteem, a Facebook “like” is not the same thing as a real-life like, and most of your “friends” on FB are not your friends at all. We prefer real hugs, from real people we care about, the people we actually enjoy being clasped by.

(Read more about it: http://bit.ly/TGq8JE)